The paths of two men seeking to make their debut in cinema cross in exceptionally amusing and, eventually, emotionally cathartic ways in Aashan, filmmaker Johnpaul George's third film after Guppy and Ambili. It's been seven years since he directed the last one. In the meantime, he produced one of Malayalam cinema's biggest successes, Romancham. There is a common factor that binds all three films: neither of them has superstars (Tovino was not as big as he is now when he did Guppy), and they're all about singular individuals, across different age groups, who seek to achieve something.
George's casting and storytelling choices are, just like him, those that go against the grain. He is one of the younger crop of filmmakers who don't feel the compulsion to cast a big star to tell their simple stories. All it requires is a lot of heart. Aashan is a perfect example. It's his most entertaining film.
Indrans (as Aashaan) and Joemon Jyothir (as Anandan) are the two men who dream of making it in cinema — the older man as an actor, the younger man as a filmmaker. The film opens with the latter. It's a big relief to see Jyothir, who has lately been playing the comic relief supporting character successively, playing a lead character with the measure of seriousness it demands. But he also gets to be funny, but not in the stereotypical, Insta-reel manner in which he was asked to do in his recent films.
Most of the humour is organic, originating from serious moments where his patience is tested and his talents questioned. He has something in common with Mohanlal's character in Udhayananu Thaaram or any real-life assistant director who is willing to put in the effort to make things work. But Aashaan, the film, also evokes the vibe of many stories centred on cinephiles who hope to see their names on the big screen. Aside from the aforementioned examples, one also remembers anything from Chirakondinja Kinavukal (underrated!) to the most recent Driving Licence.
George gives enough time to Anandan first before introducing us to Aashan because the two characters have equal prominence. Aashaan is a character that offers Indrans an opportunity to once again switch his comedic side that some of us 90s kids grew up watching. But Aashaan is not a clown either. This is someone who is vulnerable and moves through life with dignity and steely resolve, even during humiliating instances that threaten to become a source of great disillusionment and break his spirit.
There are jokes aplenty. The film crew that ends up shooting their film at Aashaan's building has to navigate challenging instances where they have to either maintain an absolutely noiseless environment or be content with hundreds of takes, or deal with a star for whom working without his wig is an unacceptable thought or the various crew members with their own quirks and colourful personalities, among many other things. These characters are written in such a way that they can make us laugh even when they are sitting silently or taking a nap. It's the kind of quality we have seen once in the early films of Sathyan Anthikad or Priyadarshan.
Speaking of Anthikad, Sobhi Thilakan, playing the filmmaker-producer, is a spitting image of his father in Nadodikaattu as he struggles to mount a production on which he has bet his life and his savings. These are not perfect, idealistic characters — some disagreeable behavioural traits are revealed in due time — but they are dead serious about their work.
The only time the energy in the film dips is when it briefly goes into a film-within-film mode, with a tone that's diametrically opposite to what we saw until then. These portions, which are placed near the third act, are slightly tiring owing to the layer of artifice and the overall tone. But it's also understandable why incorporating it is important, because here's where the cinema-as-therapy idea comes through strongly. Here's also where both Anandan and Aashaan become, in a strange way, father and son. There is a purging process that happens when one's personal trauma is channelled into a work where two different art forms converge meaningfully. Sure, the long duration might become a patience-tester after a certain point, but everything else up to that point is such a wholesome, worthwhile experience that one is willing to overlook its minor shortcomings.
Film: Aashaan
Director: Johnpaul George
Cast: Indrans, Joemon Jyothir, Sobhi Thilakan, Bibin Perumbilli, Albin Bino
Rating: 3.5/5
